Franchising

Are Emotionally Engaged Buyers Really What You Want?

Posted by Clint Lee on May 13, 2010 at 1:10 pm

Is creating an emotional bond or emotional engagement really what you’re after when working with prospective candidates who are interested in your franchise? If your job function is in franchise sales you’ll probably say “Yes”. If you’re a CEO you’re likely thinking “No?”. The nature of the franchisor-franchisee relationship is complex and must begin with a proper alignment of expectations if you want to achieve long-term viability.

Symptoms vs Problems

Posted by Clint Lee on May 12, 2010 at 5:22 pm

Quite often we speak with franchising executives about the challenges they’re facing. During these conversations, one subject that is commonly broached is the challenge surrounding franchise sales/development. Many times what the organization’s leadership is explaining to us are symptoms of a problem, but they’re looking for a solution that only treats this symptom. The reality [...]

WSJ Article Points to Continued Borrowing Challenges

Posted by Bryan O'Rourke on April 21, 2010 at 7:09 am

Improving internal systems, methods and support to really help existing franchises achieve greater profit and stability is more important than ever. Franchise flywheel represents the type of tools ZOR’s should be adopting to put an emphasis on improving core capabilities until the damper on growth passes.

Franchise Business Models Face Increasing Pressures

Posted by Bryan O'Rourke on April 6, 2010 at 1:33 pm

Bottom line is the SOP is not going to likely work for most franchise systems given the degree of change going on. If you are a manager, executive or franchisee, how aware are you of these pressures and do you concur with the analysis that your business models are feeling significant and greater pressures requiring fundamental change ?

What is Cloud Computing Exactly ?

Posted by Bryan O'Rourke on April 6, 2010 at 1:13 pm

I take for granted that many people understand what “Cloud Computing” is. Speaking at different events and talking with clients in franchising and other industries, I’ve become more aware that many don’t truly understand what the term “Cloud Computing” means.

9 Key Disciplines For Success When Adopting New IT Solutions

Posted by Bryan O'Rourke on March 25, 2010 at 5:47 pm

With the surge in more affordable and flexible cloud based information systems, like salesforce.com, many intelligent organizations are evaluating changing their information systems. This is particularly true for franchise organizations, whose unique business models offer an opportunity to improve productivity significantly via the wise adoption of well crafted solutions like franchiseflywheel.com .

The Merger Myth: Why Franchise Brand Consolidations Fail

Posted by Bryan O'Rourke on March 21, 2010 at 9:37 am

Having consulted with a variety of franchise executive, many whom have been touted in industry rags as being franchise gurus, I can say that few possess deep understanding of their own franchise system let alone the ability to ascertain the workings of another they are thinking of acquiring. Therefore, to the extent consolidations continue as a strategy reflective of a maturing franchise marketplace, folks should remain highly skeptical of mergers as a means to realize efficiencies that create value.